Blossoming Roses
by Shygeek943
Summary: A series of one-shot about Mei and the men of the MDCBK universe
1. What Could Have Been

A/N: This was inspired by episode 113. Honestly, I want Yuuta to get the happiness he always wanted.

  
  


"I want to go back in time, before Ozuru killed my parents. I want it to have never happened."

The Queen of the Ashiroi Kingdom smiled fondly at her husband and son. The resemblance between them was uncanny. The same fiery red hair, same tanned skin, and the same mischievous smile. The only noticeable difference was their eyes. Their son inherited her eyes.

Her smile faded when she saw the King's conflicted expression. Her son, Yuuta, looked concern as well. "Darling, is there something troubling you?" She asked.

He looked at her then back at the letter that was in his hand. He let a sigh, "I received a letter from the Blood King."

"The Blood King? What does he want?" asked Yuuta.

"He has invited us to his palace. It seems he would like form an alliance."

"The Blood King…" The Queen began, "has quite the fearsome reputation and is known to be a ruthless tyrant. Is it wise to be involved with such a man?"

King Murakami ran his hand over his face. "As much as I would prefer to not be connected to the Blood King in any way, I'm afraid that it's not an option. If I decline, he most likely will view us as an enemy. It would be best for the kingdom if that man sees us as an ally."

"I'd have grown up in my palace, bonded with friends…"

It has been nearly a year since the alliance between the two kingdoms was formed. And this would be the first time he would meet Prince Katsu. His eyes looked at the white-haired boy. He seemed tense but the boy held a sort of gentle presence. Yuuta glanced over at the man beside the boy. He had black hair and blue eyes.

Putting on a friendly smile, Yuuta introduced himself. "Hi, I'm Prince Murakami Yuuta," then he gestured toward his manservant, "This is Shibisaki Toshi."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Prince Asukai Katsu." He responded. "This is Kihara Daisuke."

Keeping the smile on his face, Yuuta said, "I hope that we can become good friends."

"…and one day…I'd have visited the capitol."

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Katsu asked as he nervously looked around.

Yuuta simply chuckled at his friend. "Relax, Katsu. We'll be back before anyone even notices that we're gone. Right, Toshi?"

The copper-haired manservant simply gave his master a nod.

"Does he ever talk?"

"Only when he wants to." Yuuta responded. "Now, let's just enjoy our time out here."

"I'd have met a beautiful young girl."

The boys wandered around town until they saw a familiar face.

"Isn't that Daisuke?" Katsu asked, pointing across the street. The other two looked at the direction he was pointing at and sure enough they saw the lieutenant general. Quickly Katsu grabbed Yuuta and Toshi and ducked into a nearby alley.

"I don't think that was necessary, Katsu." Yuuta commented.

"Yes, it was. If Daisuke saw us, he would have immediately brought us back to the palace."

"He wasn't even looking in our direction. I'm sure we're fine." Yuuta said to assure his friend while Toshi looked like he couldn't care less.

Still uncertain, Katsu cautiously peeked out the alley. His eyes looked over the crowd, but didn't the older male anywhere. "I don't see him." Katsu said. Maybe Yuuta was right.

"Turn around." A voice said from behind boys.

The boys closed their eyes and let out a defeated sigh when they heard that voice. Standing behind them was Daisuke who didn't look amused. "You know the rules. You aren't supposed to be out here."

"We were just walking around town." Katsu said.

"It's not like we were causing any trouble." Yuuta added.

Daisuke wasn't swayed at all. "That's not-" He began to say but was interrupted by another voice.

"Daisuke, who are you talking to?" A young, raven-haired girl appeared from behind her brother and was now looking at the boys with curiosity.

"I told you to wait for me." Daisuke lightly scolded the girl.

"And I chose not to listen." Mei gave him a quick glance before turning her attention back to the unfamiliar boys. A voice in her head noted that they were actually pretty cute. "Hello, I'm Mei." She introduced herself with a sweet smile.

Toshi seemed uninterested as usual and Katsu couldn't help but blush a little when he noticed how pretty she was. But Yuuta was the one who was impacted the most. He was blushing too and transfixed by Mei.

"She'd have been dazzled by my confidence, my charm…"

"Why are you so beautiful?" The words slipped out before Yuuta could stop them. His question caused everyone to look at him with surprise. It was hard to tell who was blushing harder, Yuuta or Mei.

"I mean—That wasn't—I didn't--," Yuuta stumbled through his words, he could feel his face blush harder. "I'm Yuuta." He finally said, averting his gaze.

"Well, Yuuta," Mei said. Her voice made him look at her, their eyes locked. She smiled, "It's nice to meet you." Mei observed the older boy, "You're pretty adorable."

Yuuta was certain that his face matched the color of his hair now.

Daisuke narrowed his eyes when he saw the exchange. He saw the way Yuuta was looking at his baby sister. And the way Mei was looking at Yuuta made it clear she had an interest in him. He could feel himself slip into overprotective brother mode. "No. No. No." Daisuke shook his head. "This--" He gestured between Mei and Yuuta, "- is not happening."

"She would have seen a happy, healthy prince, offering her anything she could ever want or need."

"Guess who?" Yuuta asked playfully as he covered Mei's eyes from behind.

A bright smile appeared on Mei's face when she heard the familiar voice. "I didn't know you were going to be in town."

Yuuta let out a low chuckle, lowered his hands and turned her around to face him. "We haven't seen each other for a month and that's the first thing you say to me? I can feel the love."

"We send each other letters almost daily," Mei responded, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. "it's not as if we lost complete contact."

Wrapping his arms around her waist, he pulled her closer. "That's true. You have no idea how eagerly I waited for your next letter. But-," His hand moved to gently cup her face. "nothing compares to actually being with you." Yuuta placed a gentle kiss on her lips, lingering for a moment.

"I've missed you, my prince." Mei said.

"I've missed you more, my love." Yuuta responded. They stayed in each other's arms, content with being together. "I got you a present." He pulled out an exquisite jade bracelet.

Mei looked at the elegant jewelry. "It's beautiful, Yuuta. But you didn't have to have to get me anything. Especially something this expensive."

"I wanted to." Yuuta said, placing the bracelet on Mei's wrist. "Besides, I've bought you more expensive gifts before."

Mei let out a sigh, "And I keep telling you that I don't need all these extravagant gifts. I want to be with you because I like you, not because of your money or status."

With a pleased smile, Yuuta said, "I know. I want to give you these things because you deserve to have the best this world has to offer. You should know how much I adore you by now. Anything that you want or need, I will gladly give it to you."

Seeing the sincerity in his eyes, Mei felt her cheeks heat up. Despite the fact that they've known each other for years now, he still had the ability to make her blush.

"Actually, there is something you can do for me, "Mei said, thinking for a moment. "Daisuke and Katsu have been helping me improve my fighting skills. I want to practice but they've been busy lately. So, will you spar with me?"

"You want to spar?" Yuuta looked at her, amused. "A part of me thinks you just want to punch me and you're using sparring as a cover."

Mei rolled her eyes. "If I wanted to hit you, I would've just hit you. I've done it on more than one occasion. No need to hide it. Now, are you going to be my sparring partner or not?" Mei pouted.

Yuuta chuckled, "Okay, I will." He pulled her closer to him. "But I won't go easy on you."

"Good. I would've been angry if you did."

"In time, I would've proposed marriage to her."

Staring at the night sky, Mei took note of the full moon that glowed brightly. She felt a slight chill from the cool wind but paid no mind to it. As she stood beneath the stars, Mei lets herself reflect on the day she had. A couple of days ago, she had arrived at the Ashirori Kingdom for the first time. Looking off to the side, Mei took in the beautiful, foreign palace.

Mei felt eyes watching her. "Are you just going to stand there gawking at me?" Mei asked, not turning around. She didn't have to. She knew who it was.

Several yards behind her, the newly crowned king stood. Yuuta silently admired the way Mei seemed to be illuminated by the moon. He made his way over to her until they were only a foot apart. Even when she felt him close, Mei still didn't turn around.

"I've been looking for you." Yuuta said. "You disappeared after the coronation. Is there something bothering you?"

"No, no. I just…" Mei let out a sigh. "It just suddenly hit me that you're royalty. I mean, I've known that you were a prince. But today when you received the title of king, it really clicked in my head." A humorless chuckle escaped her. "You're a king and sooner or later you're going to make some princess your queen. And you'll probably lose interest in me soon. And I'll-" Mei could hear her voice cracking.

"You can't actually believe that." Yuuta couldn't understand how she could think that. Mei remained silent, still refusing to look at him. Yuuta turned her around to face him. Gently cupping her face, he tilted her head upward but Mei still averted her eyes. "Look at me." Reluctant blue eyes meet his.

"Why are you still with me? You're a king now, Yuuta," Mei said with a sad smile. "I'm just a farmer's daughter. We don't go together."

"How can you say that? It doesn't matter if we're from different social classes. The only thing that matters is what I feel for you and what you feel for me. Mei, I'm in love with you." Yuuta confessed. Mei's eyes widened in shock. Despite being together for years, this is the first time he told her he loved her. "I've loved you since the first time my eyes met yours. And nothing could ever change the fact that you own my heart. There is only one woman that I want to rule beside me as my queen. It's you, Mei. It's always been you. Be my Queen."

"She'd have happily accepted, of course, the smitten girl she was…"

It felt like forever as seconds passed without Mei responding. She was simply staring at him with wide eyes. The silence did nothing to calm Yuuta down as he awaited her answer.

"Mei?" He asked, the silence was getting to be too much for him.

Mei blinked, her mind still processing. "You want me to be your queen. For that to happen I would have to marry you. You want me to marry you." She said slowly. "You want to me to marry you." She repeated with a sudden realization.

Hearing her rather blank reaction, Yuuta huffed. "Not exactly the response I was hoping for." His tone softened. "I know that this may be bit sudden. This how I planned on proposing, but I meant what I said. I love you, and I want you to stand by my side as my Queen. I understand if you need to think-"

Before he finished his sentence, Mei closed the distance between them. She threw her arms around him and pressed her lips against his. For a moment he was caught off guard, but he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer.

When they pulled away, Yuuta wore a slight smirk and his eyes were burning with hope. "I take that as a yes?"

Mei smiled. "Yes."

"…and we would've had a family together, in our palace, in peace."

King Murakami Yuuta stared at his wife of five months, still processing what she just informed him.

"Yuuta…" Mei said, her excitement from before decreased at his lack of response. "I'd appreciate it if you said something."

"Are you sure?"

Hearing his response caused Mei to deflate even more and feel a bit annoyed. "Yes, the physician confirmed it. You don't seem to--" Before she could finish her sentence, Yuuta suddenly wrapped his arms around her and twirled her around. She let out yelp in surprise. "Yuuta!"

"I'm going to be a father!" Yuuta exclaimed happily. Putting Mei down, he placed his left hand on the side of her face and the other hand gently on her flat stomach. He gazed down to where his right hand rested then looked into her eyes. His voice softer, "We're going to be a family." He pulled her closer and kissed her. When he pulled away, he rested his forehead against hers. Both of them shared a smile filled with joy.

"You're going to be a wonderful father." Mei said, looking into her husband's eyes.

"You're going to be an amazing mother." Yuuta responded before pulling Mei in for another kiss.

"Are you surprised? That my happiness could've been so simple?"

The King gently cradled the newborn prince in his arms. It was only a few hours ago that his son was born. He turned towards his wife who was resting from the long, pain hours of labor. He walked towards the bed and sat down, careful not to disturb his sleeping wife.

Yuuta looked down at his son with wonderment. He felt a strong, warm feeling in his chest. He was a father, and that evoked a strong sense of pride in him.

"Yuuta?" A soft voice called out to him.

He turned and saw Mei was awake. He gave her a warm smile. "Hey. How are you feeling?" Yuuta asked as he scooted closer to her.

Mei returned the smile. "Mostly exhausted." Her eyes flickered to the bundle in his arms. "Let me hold him."

Yuuta gently laid the newborn in her arms and sat beside her. Mei pulled her baby closer and leaned against her husband. Together, they gazed down at their son with unconditional love. The newborn inherited his father's skin tone and his mother's cerulean eyes. He had tuft of red hair.

"What should we name him?" Mei asked.

Yuuta thought for a moment. "I've always liked the name Kozuke." He suggested.

"Kozuke." Mei repeated, testing it. The baby boy responded with a coo and a smile. Mei smiled. "Kozuke it is."

"…I'd have never yearned for anything more than what I possessed."

Yuuta was woken up by the sudden movements he felt. He groggily looked at the source of the movement and saw his five-year-old son climbing onto the bed. He sat up and asked,"Kozuke, what's wrong?"

Kozuke looked at his father with wide eyes. "I had a bad dream. Can I sleep here, daddy?"

Yuuta made room and patted the space between him and his wife. Kozuke quickly crawled over and covered himself with the blanket. The movements caused Mei to open her eyes partially and see her son smiling apologetically. Instead of saying anything, she wrapped an arm around him and pulled him close. Kozuke responded by snuggling close to his mother.

As Yuuta looked at the two most important people in his world, he couldn't help but smile.

"…Saved for that young girl that I loved so dearly."

"I love you." Yuuta spoke gently to the woman whose head was resting above his heart. One hand was lightly stroking her bare arm while the other played with her hair.

"I know." Mei stated, snuggling closer to his chest. She looked up at him and gave him the smile that was reserved for him only. "I love you too."

  
  


A/N: I hope you enjoyed the story. Sorry for any grammatical errors. Reviews are always welcomed.

  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  



	2. Arguing

**A/N: Just a little drabble I wrote about Katsu and Mei. I wrote this in the middle of the night because I was thinking of MDCBK instead of sleeping, for some reason**.

"Ugh!" Mei groaned out in complete frustration. She focused her cerulean eyes on the man standing before her and glared daggers at him. "Why are you being so infuriating, Katsu?" She hissed out, teeth grinding together.

The man remained silent at first. With his arms crossed and his jaw clenched, Katsu stared down at Mei with a mask of cool indifference, but his eyes still simmered with anger. "If I'm being infuriating, it is only because you're being unreasonably stubborn." His response only added fuel to the fire that Mei felt burning in her bones. Her hands clenched into fists and the need to hit something was becoming overwhelming.

Being like fire and ice, Katsu and Mei weren't exactly strangers to arguments with each other. Most of the time it's over minor things and the disagreements end as fast as it started. But this one quickly became one of their worst ones yet. If both of them were honest, neither can quite remember what exactly they were even fighting about. It was such a small thing, but stress and exhaustion caused it to snowball into something much bigger.

Mei glared at him for a few more seconds before turning away from him and headed toward the door. Katsu's eyes narrowed at her retreating form and his voice momentarily stopped her before she could cross the threshold. "Where are you going? It's the middle of the night, Mei."

Looking over her shoulder at him, her glare had only intensified. "Out," She bit out. "I need to put some distance between us right now."

Mei left the room that they shared and began to walk with no destination in mind. Before she knew it, her subconscious had brought her to the dojo. Considering the fact that it was late at night, it wasn't surprising to see it empty. Still feeling her blood boiling, Mei decided the best course of action was to spend some time with a punching bag. Her night attire wasn't exactly appropriate for the physical activity, but she couldn't find it in her to care. After she tied her hair into a ponytail, sounds of impact filled the vacant room as Mei landed blow after blow. She doesn't know how long she went at it, but eventually she worked up quite a sweat. Her breaths were a bit heavier than usual and her arms were beginning to feel the ache. The anger slowly seeped out with each punch she dealt. When she finally stopped, she took a minute to catch her breath as she felt the exhaustion settle in.

"Do you feel better now?" A smooth, deep voice asked from the behind her.

"I'm too tired to be mad at you." Though she felt calmer, she was still somewhat guarded. Glancing over her shoulder, Mei saw Katsu standing a couple of yards away from her. His defensive posture was gone and his eyes seemed to be gentler than before. Taking in the distance, she asked, "What? Afraid that I might attack you in a fit of rage?"

A low chuckle escaped him as he moved in closer. "You said you wanted some distance between us. You were gone for a while, and I was starting to worry a bit. Knowing you, I knew that you most likely came to the dojo. And after seeing you give that punching bag quite a beating, I thought it would be best to see if you're ready to talk again before I approached." He was now standing right in front of her. "So, ready to talk?"

Mei didn't answer immediately. She looked up at the man who was towering over her smaller frame. For several moments, they simply stared into each other's eyes. Blue eyes searched for something in emerald ones. She must have found what she was looking for. Mei's demeanor softened as her remaining disgruntled feelings vanished. Seeing the change in her, Katsu closed the distance between them. He wrapped his arms around, pulled her into his embrace, and laid his head on top of hers. Mei leaned into him and rested her head against his chest, taking comfort in the warmth and security that Katsu provided. They stayed like that, neither saying a word, as minutes passed.

"I'm sorry." Katsu said quietly, not wanting to disrupt their peaceful moment.

Mei leaned back slightly to look at him and saw the sincerity in his eyes. Smiling softly, she moved her hand to the nape of his neck and pulled him down. His lips met hers in a tender kiss. "I'm sorry too." She apologized.

Katsu simply smiled at her before giving her another kiss. When he pulled away, he grabbed his hand and began leading her to the door. "Come, let's get some rest."

**A/N: I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Sorry for any grammatical errors or any of it seemed out of character. Reviews and feedback are always welcomed. And I hope everyone is doing well during quarantine.**


End file.
